TagLoops is an alpha stage Flash “movie” creation tool built by Greek IT consultant Harry Vikatos. Movies are built by pointing to images, audio or RSS feeds hosted elsewhere. Those items are tagged inside TagLoop where they can be reordered and layered over each other. The end result is a multi layered multimedia Flash movie. Those movies can also be remixed by other TagLoop users. It’s really interesting to me that TagLoops works with things as ephemeral as tags, feeds and URLs and ends up letting users create a tangible multimedia presentation.
Just like the application SlideShare that Michael reviewed last night, TagLoops is a relatively easy way to make a very rich online presentation. Neither of these work with video yet, but TagLoops aims to.
Here’s an example of one I built highlighting some of my favorite GapingVoid cartoons. I tagged my favorites in Del.icio.us and pulled the feed into TagLoops. If I tag more cartoons into the same RSS feed, they will automatically be added to my FilmLoops movie. The music is streamed by pointing to a URL where it’s hosted. My “web movie” is very simple, but there’s a great degree of sophistication available in the service. Here’s a TagLoops style demonstration of the site made by Vikatos.
The interface was difficult for me to learn to use, but now that I have I have confidence that I could easily make more movies using the tool. It’s all drag and drop, a deceptively simple way to make a short web movie. There’s a demo account on the site that anyone can use to try it out.
When you put an RSS feed into your account you can either play all the images or audio in that feed automatically, or select just some items to drag and drop into your movie. It’s quite a fluid system.
Audio files can effectively be edited inside TagLoops. Video and Flash animation are next on the agenda for item types to be brought into TagLoops.
The site would benefit greatly from some usability work and clearer instructions, though there is a help wiki available. There’s a lot here and it’s very impressive for a part time project by one man. Remixable drag and drop movies made of multimedia delivered by tags and feeds are about as cutting edge as you can get. Will it work? Only time will tell, but I can say that using it is a lot easier than describing it.
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I fear that Web 2.0 is advancing at a rate that is sooooooo much faster than anybody can really take advantage of or care about.
POP?
Joe,
Ditto, all these movie sites are getting a bit ridiculous…
Well put Joe. I disagree, but if that is in fact the case we may be looking at the poster child right here.
Hey Harry - you made techcrunch! I’m proudn to say you made http://www.mediangler.com first though. Best of luck
I am not sure i understand the significance of this feature though - why would i want to create a flash presentation of content available on the web? - probably, i am missing the point.
Also, how do they plan to make $$?
Thyaga
TagLoops is a combination of two flash tools: the authoring tool and the player.
What’s behind it, is a whole new concept, we call ‘web movies’. A web movie extends the concept of a web page (as a combination of text, links, layout info and embedded media) by adding the dimension of time.
What you create with TagLoops is not a flash or video binary, but a set of metadata, currently stored in our database, but easily encoded in XML.
Web movies is really about repackaging web content into an immersive kind of medium and offering a whole new spectrum of creative possibilities.
Check out our wiki and feel free to add your own thoughts.
are you fucking kidding me?
This is the most absurd pile of poo poo I have ever seen. Please be more selective.
I get it. Ever listen to a podcast and imagine all the links and refrences associated with the conversation. Imagine if you could represent that in a little flash movie. Video is an amazing medium for expressing ideas and this adds a rich layer of context to the web.
Erik, I think that’s one very good way to think about it.
I thank you for trying to talk this up Marshall. I think it’s going to take someone to make themselves a star as a native to this medium before a lot of people will take notice. It seems the technical idea itself doesn’t excite people as much as, say, Amanda Congdon in a low-slung blouse, or a Keith & The Girl live show.
That headline is the epitome of all the things that are wrong with Web 2.0 It is pure masturbatory buzzword overkill. Disgusting.
Matt, for better or for worse - that’s what the thing is! You make movies out of tags and feeds. Trust me, I chuckled when I wrote the headline.
Hi,
I have been using Beatware Mobile Designer for 3 years now and it works just fine.
Aurelie
The epitomy of web 2.0 good job Harry V.